In a rack-mounted modular circuit device, individual circuit boards may be made removable from a circuit module by providing the module with a removable access panel or an openable door on the front face of the module, and configuring the interior of the module housing with a number of guides for accepting circuit boards so that the boards may be slid into and out of the module through the access opening.
Rack-mounted modules are also conventionally provided with side flanges adjacent their front face, for securing the modules in place in the supporting structure or rack. The modules are provided with runners along their side surfaces which cooperate with guides in the rack so that the module may be slid horizontally into the rack until the side flanges at its front face contact uprights of the rack to prevent further rearward movement. The side flanges may then be attached to the uprights to secure the module in place. The modules are also conventionally provided with handles on their front faces, to enable the modules to be slid into and removed from the rack. Since the handles are required to be mounted to the module structure itself, the handles are conventionally placed at end regions of the front face of the module, so that the area between the handles is available for the provision of access doors. The provision of fixed areas of the front face of the module for the mounting of handles however results in areas of the interior of the module adjacent the side walls being inaccessible.